Still Waters
by Fictatious
Summary: Pharaoh Atemu makes his way by sacred barque through the sea of Nu in the Kingdom of Osirus. A challenge is put to him in the 12th division of the underworld and Atemu is caught by surprise; this detail was never mentioned in the Book of Gates.


The black waters of the Nu were quiet for a time, as the golden barque drifted slowly, silently through them. Atemu stood at the bow, watching the shadows that shifted restlessly around the vessel. His guide, who appeared as a large jackal, darker than the deepest night, stood just behind him, emanating the quiet patience of eternity.

Atemu saw a flicker out of the shadows surrounding the boat and he glanced to the side. What started as the faintest flicker soon turned into massive walls of fire, roaring up out of the water on either side of the craft, forming a flaming hallway through which the barque continued to glide. _We approach the final division, Pharaoh_, Anubis said as his charge stared at the flames, turbulent light reflecting off the golden boat and gleaming against Atemu's adornments.

"... Yes," Atemu whispered, and soon he found that he could see an end to the flaming corridor, an enormous gate guarded by a sentry more than twice the size of human being. The gate's lintel was marked on one side by the sign of Atum and on the other by the sign of Khepri, and the doors were blocked by two spears, holding themselves aloft and crossed without the aid of any hands.

_He is Pai who guards the entrance_, Anubis said and Atemu nodded. _Here me, Pai, the Pharaoh, whom is one with Ra, will pass this gate into the Twelfth Division!_

Pai bowed his head and the doors swung slowly open as the spears blocking them lifted, leaving a clear path in front of the barque, into an impenetrable blackness beyond. The boat drifted on, without ever slowing, and Atemu strained his eyes, trying to see what was ahead, although knowing it wasn't possible. The landmarks of the Duat would reveal themselves to him in their time, on their terms, and he could do nothing to rush the process.

_Look now, Pharaoh, we come to your final trial,_ Anubis announced at last.

The boat stilled in the black waters and two monstrous shapes loomed out of the shadows. To either side of the barque lay coiled an enormous snake, their faintly glowing eyes locked upon Atemu. _Sebi_, Anubis called to the one on the left. _Reveal to Heru-Khuti that which is hidden, that he may see that lost soul who dwells in the Shadows._

The snake suddenly shifted, its body spreading, loosening, its head raising up high above the water, and as it uncoiled, a figure, formerly trapped within its grasp, was released. He staggered in a dazed manner and his head slowly lifted to stare at Atemu. Atemu stared back silently, startled and unsure of what he was meant to do.

"... It _would_ be you to decide my fate, wouldn't it," the Shadow of Malik Ishtar said, his mouth twisting spitefully. "You wiped me from the earth and now you'll wipe me from existence."

"... Great Anubis, what is the trial here?" Atemu asked, his eyes staying on the morose Shadow.

_As the Pharaoh is with Ra, and as He decided the fate of the Enemy of Ra, He must now decide the fate of the Enemy of Pharaoh,_ Anubis said.

"... His fate?" Atemu whispered, faltering slightly and turning to look at the jackal beside him.

_Will the Enemy of the Pharaoh drown in the waters of the Nu and be forever expunged from all worlds? Will the Enemy of the Pharaoh remain trapped in Amunet, forever without light? Will the Enemy of the Pharaoh be taken through the gate of resurrection?_

Atemu swallowed, looking back at the Shadow of Malik again. The Shadow had been killed, sent to the kingdom of Osiris, but naturally that wouldn't be the end of his fate. Atemu hadn't dreamed that _he_ would be called upon to decide the Shadow's _final _fate. That it would be up to him whether another being would join the cycle of days or be erased, as though he had never existed at all. Even though he had been the Living Horus, Atemu was still human at his very core; did he have the right to utterly destroy a thinking, sentient soul?

"... Shadow, what do you regret?" he asked at last.

The Shadow narrowed its eyes, glaring at him. "Losing to _you_," he said.

Atemu was quiet for another moment, before taking a different tack. "What memory do you cherish most?"

The Shadow looked suspicious for a moment and then turned his head away sharply. He didn't look Atemu in the eye, but he couldn't have lied in this place if he'd wanted to. "... Holding Malik. Telling him to stop crying... and he did."

Atemu studied the Shadow for a long time, its posture, its distrusting glare, its standoffish, defensive manner. Then he lifted his hand and held it out. The Shadow blinked, surprised. The serpent surrounding him sank into the black water, completely out of sight, and the shadow was left standing on a small, solidified patch in the Nu.

Below Atemu's extended hand, the water at the side of the barque seemed to freeze and spread out like frost across a window-pane, reaching out and connecting to the ice beneath the Shadow. The Shadow stared down at it, and then back at the Pharaoh, pressing his lips together and looking doubtful, although the odium had left his features.

Slowly, hesitantly, the Shadow took a step, and then another, inching his way across the bridge and faltering with every movement. When he drew near, he stared apprehensively at the Pharaoh, looking as though he expected at any moment for Atemu to laugh in his face and push him into the water, then he reached up his hand. Atemu caught it with his own, and tugged gently, urging, as the Shadow dubiously climbed over the side of the boat.

Inside the hull, the Shadow promptly crouched down, his eyes shooting about nervously, filled with confusion and apprehension. After a moment, Atemu looked back to Anubis. It was hard to tell, as every feature of the jackal's face -with the notable exception of his eyes- was as black as his fur, but Atemu thought that Anubis seemed to be smiling.

Anubis nodded to him and then turned his head toward the remaining giant snake, coiled to the starboard side of the barque. _Reri_, he called out. _Reveal to Heru-Khuti that which is hidden, that he may see that lost soul who dwells in the Shadows._

The second snake uncurled just as the first had, and Atemu was fairly sure he knew who it was going to reveal amid its coils. However, he was startled again when there appeared not one body but two loosed from the serpent's grip. They stumbled, as the Shadow had, and slowly came to notice the Pharaoh in the barque.

The Thief King Bakhura met Atemu's eyes for a moment and then slumped down to his knees wearing a despondent look. Beside him, an image of the modern-world's Bakura, only with blazing red eyes, stared back at Atemu, and then, as his companion collapsed, turned his attention to the Thief King, and rested a hand on his shoulder, his expression so soft he looked like the real Bakura Ryou at that moment.

"... Apep was destroyed," Atemu said quietly, his brow pinched.

_He was,_ Anubis agreed.

Atemu frowned, looking at the two bodies that should have represented only one soul, the opposite of how it once was. "Why are there two Thief Kings?" he asked, turning his eyes to Anubis again.

_You see the Thief King whom you fought and slew three thousand years ago, and you see the servant whom took up his sword and his Ba,_ Anubis replied.

Atemu looked back to the two, the Thief King slumped on the 'ground' and the 'other Bakura' -he was back to being that- standing protectively over him, glaring at the Pharaoh. Atemu took a steadying breath, before attempting the same question he'd asked Malik's Shadow. "Bakhura, what do you regret?"

"... Living," the Thief King whispered, not looking up, and the other-Bakura's face twitched. "... He used me. It was always Him, from the very start. He took everything, devoured all of them to feed Himself... and then He made me _worship_ Him." The Thief King finally looked up at Atemu, a bitter smile on his lips. "To think that I might have had my revenge... if I'd been on _your_ side."

Atemu stared at him, too stunned to speak, for a long time. When he finally managed to open his mouth, all he could think to say was to repeat the second question. "... What memory do you cherish most?" he whispered.

The Thief King made a sound halfway between a snort and a laugh, and seemed of the opinion that such a question was stupid and pointless, but he answered anyway. "A pet asp I had once, for only a little while. He was white as a cloud..." He leaned his head against the other-Bakura's thigh and smiled very slightly.

Atemu looked more carefully at the other-Bakura. A white asp? Was the other-Bakura a fusion of the Thief King's Ka with his mind upon death? Like the Dark Magician? "... Asp," Atemu called, for lack of a better name, "what do you regret?"

"Failing my Master," the other-Bakura answered easily, without a moment's consideration, but then he gripped the fabric of the Thief King's coat in his hand and added. "My _real_ Master. Not the Dark One."

Atemu nodded slowly. "And do you have a cherished memory?"

The other-Bakura thought about that one for a moment, before a slow grin spread across his lips and he locked eyes with Atemu. "I liked playing with you. You were an excellent opponent."

Atemu found himself smiling, although he wasn't sure it was entirely appropriate. Of course, if the other-Bakura was a Duel Monster at his core, it was only natural that games should be his joy in life.

When Atemu had extended his hand to Malik's Shadow, the tone had been somber, but now he could feel himself smiling as he held out his hand again and watched the second serpent sink into the Nu as another ice-bridge began to form, crackling its way across the water toward the Thief King and other-Bakura's island. The other-Bakura gave him a startled, suspicious look, like Malik's Shadow had, but the Thief King just glanced at Atemu's hand and then grinned softly, letting out a small puff of a laugh, before pushing himself to his feet.

The other-Bakura followed behind the Thief King, practically stepping on his heels, and glanced nervously at the Nu, while the Thief King kept his eyes locked on Atemu, taking no notice of his footing, and when he reached the boat, took Atemu's hand firmly. Atemu's smile widened a bit more, something in him feeling much lighter suddenly, and he pulled the two aboard the ark.

Once standing within the golden vessel, the Thief King didn't let go of Atemu's hand, but instead gave a sudden, sharp tug, surprising Atemu and making him stumble forward. Then the Thief King surprised him further by wrapping his other arm behind Atemu's shoulders and embracing him. "Thank you," he murmured.

"... I've no reason to condemn you to oblivion," Atemu said slowly, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

"No," the Thief King said, releasing Atemu and stepping back. "I'm thanking you for destroying _Him_."

Atemu nodded slowly, and then blinked and looked around, realizing that the barque had started moving again. Slowly, ahead of it, a gate immerged from the darkness. It was gleaming gold, and ahead of the sentry stood two women of unearthly beauty. _Your mothers_, Anubis announced. _Isis and Nephthys. And he is Akheki who guards the exit._

Atemu dropped to his knees, staring up at Isis and Nephthys, towering giantesses whose loveliness could have made the stars themselves weep. They smiled fondly down at him. _Atemu_, Isis said in a soft yet penetrating voice. She was the first person to call him by his given name since he started his journey through the underworld. _It is a joy to see you, you who has done what none of us could._ She bowed her head to Atemu and he couldn't quite process it.

_Atemu_, Nephthys said, her voice every bit as heartbreaking as her sister's. _You have broken the cycle, precious child. The Great Enemy is removed, no longer will he crouch at the horizon, no longer will he threaten our Sun. _She bowed her head as well.

"It- it has been my greatest honor to serve You," Atemu whispered, and he could feel hot tears cutting a path down his cheeks.

_Where do you wish to go, Atemu?_ Isis crooned.

Atemu opened his mouth and it took him a while to form his confusion into words. "I... I don't understand, Great Isis."

Nephthys smiled, crouching down, bringing her enormous form closer to a level with the occupants of the barque. _You have done a great thing, and preformed a great favor to Ra,_ she explained. _Now Ra offers you the choice. Will you finish this journey with Anubis and go forth in your spirit body? Or will you finish this journey on Khnum's wheel, and go forth in a body of flesh?_

Atemu stared, caught entirely off guard by the offer. It had never been part of the verses, nor occurred to him in any form, that anyone should be given this choice. He had died, three thousand years ago, and so naturally he had to pass on into the next life. But the opportunity to grow up? To return to his friends and learn more about himself and the mysteries of the world? That was something that he had never even thought to hope for.

"... I think I would like to grow up," Atemu whispered.

Nephthys stood back up, she and Isis both beamed down at him. There was a rustle beside him, and Atemu looked over to see Anubis jumping out of the boat and onto the surface of the Nu. It didn't bother to solidify under his feet, he stepped across it as easily as a water-skipper and sat down at Nephthys' side. The ark started to move again and Atemu's eyes turned forward, where the enormous, golden gateway was opening. Unlike all the previous ones, which had shown only darkness on the far side, this time the reason Atemu couldn't see beyond was that there was so much light pouring through.

...

...

Putting this together was a mighty task for my powers of magical-bullshittery. The gods and goddesses mentioned at the gates all come out of the last chapter of the Book of Gates from the Sarcophagus of Seti, although in the text, Isis and Nephthys appear as uraeuses (that cobra sticking out of King Tut's head) and are more part of the scenery than people you interact with. Also, the whole trial there was completely made up; Sebi and Reri are the serpent-guards for the last gate. Apparently snakes hang out around gates (it's how they keep getting onto all the planes).

Oh, and Nephthys mentioned 'Khnum's wheel'; Khnum was the god who made humans out of clay on his pottery-wheel, and after they got that creation stuff out of the way, he continued to make all the babies to stick into ladies wombs. Basically, he's responsible for bodies. And as a ceramicist, I just have to say, I don't know how the _hell_ he managed to make a people-shape on a pottery-wheel, what with the arms and legs and all.

So now I've pretty much got a set-up or explanation for an infinite number of fics on FFnet where 'why' was glossed over. I solved for Y! The original goal when I first started poking this idea was to write an explanation that would make Bakushipping not cracky and not AU. Which was silly, because I didn't even have any ideas for Bakushipping fics in the first place. But maybe I'll come up with something, now that I have this perfectly good set-up lying around...


End file.
